The Announcements
by thepuppiesinpink
Summary: Update: This is now a three part series of how Elizabeth told Henry she was pregnant with each of their children.
1. Stevie

A/N: This is just a fluffy piece. I saw a Cracked video making fun of Youtube pregnancy announcement videos, and I started thinking about how a GOOD announcement would go. This is what I came up with... It was literally written on my phone during a long car ride. This is all to say that it is not meant to line up perfectly with canon. I'm also not going to hold myself to this if I ever decide to create some elaborate headcanon. But feel free to let me know your thoughts!

* * *

Bess looked at the readout. Two little blue lines looked back at her. She had already known she was pregnant, but seeing the test she knew for sure. She was completely elated. She and Henry had decided about six months before that they wanted a child, and they had been trying ever since.

She knew Henry would also be thrilled, but she wasn't sure how to tell him. It was big news, of course, and Henry was such a contemplative person. He could get lost in his head if she let him, and so she wanted to make sure Henry would be focused on the moment instead of the impending change in their lives.

Bess spent several days deciding how best to tell Henry. Elaborate schemes seemed wrong. So much of their relationship was private and quiet. Bess was also hesitant to involve anyone else. This moment needed to be held between just the two of them. She decided that the thing to do would be to tell him right after Sunday Mass. Henry tended to be the most grounded and present after Mass.

Finally, Sunday came. Bess could barely focus on the Mass. Even though the prayers and motions were very familiar to her by now, her mind was elsewhere. She also didn't have the benefit of being raised Catholic, as Henry did. Even while she occasionally forgot to cross herself or stand, Henry didn't seem to notice too much. Once Mass was over, and everyone started getting up to leave, Bess couldn't contain her excitement anymore.

"Come on, Henry. Let's go." Bess was anxious to be outside the cathedral.

Henry knelt to genuflect and then looked at his wife.

"I'm coming, babe. What's wrong? You okay?" Henry could sense her agitation. For all of Bess's efforts, Henry knew something was up.

"I'm fine. I just want to beat the crowd." She tried to avoid his intense gaze.

"Alright. I've got you. We can go home and whip up some lunch."

He put his arm around her waist and led her out the doors of the church. Henry stopped to speak to the priest about the homily, but Bess tried to hurry him along. She wasn't ready for another discussion of some saint's long forgotten manuscript. Henry didn't seem surprised that his wife wasn't interested in the conversation. She supported his interests, but she had always been more interested in moving forward instead of trying to bring the past with her. She managed to pull him away from the priest, and get him outside. But just as they got to the bottom of the stairs, Bess stopped him.

"Hang on a minute, Henry." Bess took a breath. This was it. Showtime.

"What's up?" Henry was confused by her change in momentum.

"Would you kiss me?" Bess looked up at him with wide eyes.

Henry laughed. "Always."

They kissed sweetly, aware that their entire church could be watching. Elizabeth tried to tell him with her kiss that she needed him to respond well. Since finding out she was pregnant, she had gotten a little nervous. A child would change everything. She was ready, but it was still scary. She needed Henry to be happy about it - to be happy with her.

"I love you, Bess. You sure there isn't something you haven't told me?" Henry wasn't dumb. Something was definitely up.

"Well actually, I do have something to tell you..."

Henry tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. He didn't interrupt her; instead he showed her that she had his full attention.

She took his hand in hers and pulled it to her waist.

"I'm pregnant. We're having a baby." Her heart skipped a beat waiting for his reaction.

Henry's eyes never left hers. His hand moved to caress just below her belly button.

"Are you-" Bess started to ask if he was happy. His expression was unreadable. But before she could get the words out, his mouth suddenly moved to cover hers in a searing kiss, his arms holding her fiercely.

"I've never been so happy in my entire life. You are so wonderful." Henry reached up to hold her face gently. "Darling, you are so marvelous. I love you."

Bess threw her arms around him, holding him tight.

Holding his wife tightly to him, Henry couldn't contain his excitement. He picked her up and spun her in a circle. Both their smiles were evident to anyone looking.

Bess squealed. "Henry!" But she was happier than she had been in months.

"I've got you, babe."

Henry held her to him, letting her toes gently brush the ground.

"I've got you, don't worry. I'm going to take good care of you and our little family."

"I couldn't have asked for a better father for our children." Contentment washed over Bess. She had absolutely no regrets. This was the man she wanted to spend her life with, and this was the man she wanted to help raise their children.

"You are already the most amazing mother." Henry meant it. Her happiness was infectious.

"When this baby is screaming at three in the morning, you may have to remind me."

"I'll never let you forget." With that, Henry gathered Bess in another tender hug.

Bess reflected later that this announcement really couldn't have gone any better. It was the most beautiful moment. Occasionally, she wished she had had someone film it, but there was a certain mystery to such an important moment belonging only to them. Under towering trees, in front of hundreds of people, but noticing none of them. Elizabeth tried to remember that moment when there was a particularly bad news cycle. Their family had always been in the public eye, but when there was such strong love, the outside scrutiny didn't matter.


	2. Allison

A/N: Okay, y'all convinced me to make this into a three part story. I thought this would turn out about as long as the previous chapter, but then it kinda grew legs. Your feedback is always appreciated.

* * *

"You know, babe, maybe we should put off having a second kid."

"Henry, what are you on about now?" In the last couple months, Elizabeth had gotten used to non-stop comments from Henry about his desire to have another baby.

"Well, I'm just saying, everyone says we're all going to die in Y2K, so why bother?"

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "Henry, I swear, if you say one more thing about Y2K, you're sleeping on the sofa."

It seemed like half of Bess's life now involved the 2000 switch. No one knew what would happen to the entire world's computers. The electricity system might go down. Missiles might fire indiscriminately. She was sick of talking about it.

"You play dirty, no fair. Besides, I haven't heard any complaints about our sleeping arrangements." Henry gave her a coy wink.

Elizabeth smiled to herself, knowing something Henry didn't.

Sobering, she replied, "Well, I mean, I'm not really one to complain. But seriously, if you do want to wait, we can. I don't want to push you." Elizabeth tried to look like she doubted Henry's months of opining for another baby. She let her voice trail away softly, and she refused to make eye contact.

"Hey. Hey. Bess." Henry tried to get her to look at him. "Elizabeth, do you want another baby?" He took her hands in his, pulling her close to him.

"I do only if you do." Elizabeth couldn't meet his eyes. He would make her. Henry took this as reticence.

"Lizzie, I want another baby, but I want you to be happy. If you aren't, we'll wait as long as you want." Henry reached a hand up to cup her face so he could kiss her gently. "You are all I need."

Elizabeth wrapped her arms around Henry's neck. "I am happy, Henry."

"Promise?"

"Yes. I promise. I want another baby, too." Elizabeth's smile this time was completely genuine.

They shared a quiet moment together, each lost in the other's gaze. For all of Bess's toying with Henry, he had comforted her. She needed reassurance that they were ready for another child. In one sense, no one could ever be ready for a child. It was a responsibility that one grew into, just like anything else. But even so, Bess needed to know Henry was ready.

"Are you nervous about it, babe?" Henry wanted to know what had sparked Elizabeth's sudden concern.

"Maybe a little, I guess." Elizabeth wondered how Henry had gotten her to admit it. She had started playing offense, and now here she was letting Henry analyze her.

"Why are you nervous?"

Henry was going to start playing Socrates; Elizabeth just knew it.

"I'm nervous because babies are a lot of work." Bess knew he wouldn't contest that.

"And why are you nervous about lots of work?"

"Because I want to do it right."

"You don't think you'll be able to do the right thing if we have another baby?" Henry gently led her over to the sofa so they could both sit down.

"No. I don't know. Maybe. What if I get that promotion and don't have time?" Bess was up for a promotion since she had finished her certification in Farsi.

"So you're worried about how much time the baby will take?"

"No! But what if I have to choose between the baby and work?"

"Have you had to choose between Stevie and work?"

"No. You always take care of her when I have to work late." Elizabeth kissed him gratefully.

"So why will this baby be any different?" Henry refused to be deterred by her kisses.

"Because… I don't want to make you do something you don't want to."

"Why wouldn't I want to take care of our children?"

"Because you are busy."

"Why is my being busy different than you being busy?" Henry wanted to ask when he had ever acted too busy for their family, but he wanted to find the source of her anxiety.

"Because you should be able to count on me to take care of the kids."

"Elizabeth. Think about what you just said."

"I guess that's pretty sexist."

"Just a bit, babe." He ran his hand up and down her arm, telling her that it was okay.

"But you taking care of the kids is a favor to me."

"….maybe. Then is you taking care of the kids a favor to me?" Henry wasn't ready to concede the point.

"I guess. But one that you deserve." Elizabeth believed this wholeheartedly.

"Why?"

"Because you love me."

"Last time I checked, you loved me, too. Anything changed?" Henry smiled.

"Of course it hasn't. Don't be silly." Bess leaned into Henry, wrapping her arms around his waist.

"So why don't I owe it to you to take care of the kids in exchange for your love?"

"That isn't how it works." They didn't have to 'pay' each other for love or favors.

"I agree."

"I love taking care of Stevie." Elizabeth did love spending time with her children. She had taken it for granted, but she was always surprised to find coworkers who thought their kids were annoying or messy or noisy.

"You know I do, too."

"But it's work."

"Yes it is." Henry didn't see any point arguing.

"And I don't want you to get tired of it."

"Why don't you want me to get tired of working for our family?"

"….I don't want you to get tired of me." Her voice nearly broke.

"Bess… Come here."

Elizabeth had gotten up to pace around the room. Damn Henry and his Socratic method. She glanced back over at him. Tears were glistening in both of their eyes. Elizabeth didn't move. She felt rooted to the spot.

Seeing Elizabeth wasn't moving, Henry got up and went to her. She looked small, like the twelve year old she had been when her father sent her to boarding school.

"I'm never going to get tired of you. That's not going to happen." Henry tried to kiss her, but she moved away.

Tears were streaming down her face in earnest now.

"It happens all the time, Henry. People fall out of love."

"They do. But most of them aren't as compatible as we are."

"How do you know?" _There's no way you can know that, Henry._

"Because we've stayed up talking more nights than we've slept. We know each other, babe." Henry was exaggerating slightly, but not much.

"But it could still happen. You might wake up one day and think I'm not worth the work." Her tears started to fall harder. This was her greatest fear.

"No. That's not going to happen. I can't promise you that nothing will come up. But I can promise you that I will never think you are too much work. I can promise you that I will never stop loving you. And I can promise you that you are worrying about something so unlikely and so far away that it isn't worth your time."

"Henry, I need you. I wouldn't be here without you." Elizabeth's tears weren't stopping.

"You would, actually. Don't put yourself down. You were interning at the CIA before you even finished high school. You had your degree before we got married. You were doing pretty well without me. You are perfectly capable on your own. Don't convince yourself that you aren't."

Elizabeth smiled through her tears, trying to dry her face with her hands. "You know, any other husband would have just promised not to leave to keep me from crying."

"Well, a few tears never hurt anyone," Henry said, giving her a smirk.

"Henry!" Elizabeth gave him a gentle shove. "That's a _horrible_ thing to say."

"What's more horrible, letting you cry for five minutes, or letting you think you can't do something?"

Elizabeth laughed again. "Well, I guess if I had wanted someone who wouldn't challenge me, I'd have married someone else."

"And for the record, everything you do with our children is the right thing. You have a great maternal instinct. And even if you get overwhelmed, that'll be okay, too. And you have done a great job making time for Stevie. We won't let work get in the way of our family. And even if it has to for a while, we'll make it work. And I love taking care of Stevie. You know I secretly love you working late so I get a chance to spoil her. And I don't expect you to take care of the kids. I know you, and I know you love our family, so I know that we can lean on each other when one of us can't take care of the kids. And taking care of the kids isn't a favor. It's a commitment that we both undertake together out of love. And even if it were a favor to you, you would deserve a break because you're the one who has to birth the little monsters. And I am never going to get tired of you. I'm never going to up and leave you. That isn't how this works for us. I made a promise to you that I take very seriously. I love you too much to leave you, please believe me when I say that."

Elizabeth stopped breathing for a second. Her tears kept falling, but her eyes finally felt clear. After a minute, she found her voice. "You say you love the Socratic method, but I know you hate it." She was still processing all of Henry's words.

"What do you mean? The Socratic method got us here, didn't it?"

"Yeah. But you wanted to interject between every question, and instead of doing that, you saved it all up so you could make a grand, impassioned speech."

"It still worked."

"I guess it did." Bess smiled

"You okay now?" Henry was still concerned about her.

"As long as I've got you." Elizabeth folded herself against Henry's chest, still smiling.

"Me, too, babe." Henry's arms encircled his wife securely. "You hungry?"

Bess laughed. Leave it to Henry.

"Starving."

"What do you want for dinner?"

"That depends."

"On what?"

"Nothing. Just let me think about it while I go freshen up."

"Fine, but this really doesn't have to be a complicated thing. I'm fine with pizza."

Bess called back to him over her shoulder, "Henry, we've been out of college for ten years. Let's stop eating like teenagers."

Elizabeth stepped into the master bathroom and shut the door. Now was the moment. She was pretty sure she was pregnant, but she had to wait to take the test. She didn't want to take it too early and be disappointed. But now was the time.

The wait for the stupid stick to show one line or two felt like hours. She knew it was only five minutes, but it made Bess more nervous by the second.

"Babe? You okay?" Henry knocked on the door gently. Elizabeth had seemed fine after their conversation, but maybe she wasn't. He knew she could get upset, and understandably so, when dealing with abandonment. Her parents hadn't given her much choice about boarding school, and while they were very supportive, she was still a little sensitive and unsure that people wouldn't leave her. Henry thought he had kept from opening that particular wound, but he also knew Bess wasn't one to be completely open with her feelings. She always needed a little prodding and reassurance.

Elizabeth didn't answer.

Henry knocked again. "Bess, come on. It's all going to be okay."

She opened the door quietly, soft tears clinging to her eyelashes.

Henry's heart melted. "Come here, babe. It's okay. I've got you." He was silently cursing himself for making her this sad. The line between challenging her and pushing her limits was difficult to find.

Elizabeth let him pull her into a hug, but said, "No. I'm happy, Henry."

"Okay… why are you happy?" Now he was just confused.

"Because we're having a baby." She held out the positive pregnancy test for Henry to see.

The test fell to the floor as Henry's mouth found hers in a tender kiss. For several moments, both of them reveled in the love between them now physically manifested in a baby growing in Elizabeth's womb. They were ready. They had just proven to each other that they could cope as long as they were together.

"Well, I guess we should go out somewhere fancy to celebrate. You pick." Henry finally stepped back to let Elizabeth breathe.

"Let's get a pizza and go eat it on the river."

Henry gave her a funny look. "Really? You want pizza and the river? It's early spring. It's going to be freezing."

"Good point. We should bring a blanket for Stevie. Ooh, and let's bring ice cream." Elizabeth was completely serious, and obviously excited about their family dinner.

"Won't you get cold?"

"You'll keep me warm." Her answer was so automatic and sure, it pulled at Henry's heart. She _had_ taken their conversation seriously.

Henry rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I will." He smiled and pulled her back into his embrace for another kiss.

"I promise."


	3. Jason

A/N: That's a wrap! Hope you all liked it. I still feel like this was a pretty dumb premise, but it worked out. Do let me know if there are other prompts or topics you want to see. There's always work to avoid.

* * *

"Come on, Henry, it'd be fun!"

"Babe, Allison isn't even two, yet."

"Yeah, and research has shown that this is the optimal spacing between children."

Henry rolled his eyes. The conversation was getting old to him.

"Elizabeth, you're just getting restless. Ask Conrad for more work if you're bored, but let's take some time before we decide to have another baby." Henry was trying to be as polite and delicate as possible, but he was against having another baby. If truth were told, he was a little overwhelmed with the process of getting tenure at UVA.

"I'm not just restless, Henry. I want another baby. Come on, they're cute."

Henry looked at his wife who was smiling at him like she was holding a basket of kittens.

"Yeah, and we've got two really cute ones already."

"But I want to give you a son…"

"Hon, you know I think Stevie and Allison can carry on the family name just fine by themselves. We don't need a son for the sake of having more testosterone in the house."

"Come on. You know you want to teach a son to play ball and build stuff."

"For a feminist, you sure perpetuate a lot of gender roles when you're trying to get your way."

"I didn't say you weren't going to teach Allison and Stevie those things, too…"

"You're saying I'm the one who's going to be teaching our kids the manly stuff. That's not very progressive."

"Okay. Fine. I want another baby because I want another baby."

"Well, I don't." Henry got up and walked into the bedroom. He needed some space. It wasn't that he was completely against the idea; it was that he was too overwhelmed at the moment. He was trying to get his third book published before his final tenure hearing and he was still an active NSA agent.

"Hey. Henry. I'm sorry." Elizabeth slowly followed him into the bedroom and sat down at her vanity. "I didn't mean to push you."

"Well you have a funny way of showing it." Henry knew he was being mean.

"What are you really worried about?" Bess knew he was worried about something other than a third child.

"Nothing. I just don't want another baby right now." _Drop it, Bess._

"I don't believe that."

"Fine! You want to know why I don't want another baby?" Henry was getting angry now.

"Yes, I do." Elizabeth maintained a placid exterior.

"I don't want to have to wake up with a crying baby nine times a night when I have faculty meetings the next morning. I don't want to have to neglect my research every time the baby gets a cold. I don't want to have to worry about what to tell the baby when you have to go to some dangerous country and nearly get yourself shot. I just don't want to be someone else's father!" Tears started forming in his eyes.

Elizabeth took a breath to keep herself from responding emotionally. "Would you want to get up with the baby if you didn't have a faculty meeting in the morning?"

"I mean, I don't think anyone wants to wake up, but I probably wouldn't complain as much, if that's what you're getting at."

"It's not. I don't think this has anything to do with kids. I think you're worried about getting tenure and finishing your book. And then I think you're pissed off that you can't tell me what you're doing with the NSA."

"You don't think I can separate my feelings well enough?" Henry couldn't say she was right immediately.

Elizabeth gave him a hard look.

Henry acknowledged that she hadn't been attacking him. "Okay. Sorry. I didn't mean that. But I'm still not ready for another baby."

"That's fair. I'm not going to push you about the baby, okay? That's not fair for you."

"Thank you." Henry looked back at her out of the corner of his eye.

"So… Why are you so upset with these other things?"

"Can't you just leave it alone?" He really didn't want to talk about it right now.

"If you don't want to talk about it now, fine, but we'll need to talk about it sometime."

"I'm just stressed out. That's it."

"I know that isn't it."

"Well it is." Henry got up to leave the room. "Can we continue this later?"

Elizabeth got up, too. "Of course we can. I'm always here."

"Me too, babe." His arms opened in offering a hug.

"I love you no matter what." She looked up at him.

He looked down at her. His mouth opened to say something, but before any words came out, Bess stopped his words with a kiss.

* * *

About a month later…

* * *

"Elizabeth? You got a minute?" Henry walked into their office and sat down at his desk while Elizabeth typed away at the report she was working on.

"Sure. What's up?" She was finishing the sentence she was typing.

"I think we could try for another baby, if you still want to."

Bess stopped typing and took off her glasses.

"Okay… Are you sure? Why the change of heart?" She stayed seated behind her desk, looking at Henry.

"I finished with the tenure committee today. I got it." His words betrayed no emotion.

"Oh my gosh! Henry! Really?" She jumped up from her desk and ran into his arms.

Henry picked her up, letting her toes brush the floor, and whirled her around in a circle.

"Yeah." He kissed her, leaving her breathless. "I've got tenure. I feel like I can breathe again."

"It's official and everything?"

"We sent the paperwork over to payroll an hour ago." Henry smiled. Leave it to Bess to make sure everything was in writing.

"Congratulations. I know how hard you've worked for this, babe." She kissed him again, but tenderly this time, hoping he understood.

"I didn't realize how worried about it I was."

"But it's over now. You've got it. You don't have to worry about it anymore." Elizabeth gave him several more small pecks.

"I know. And I'm ready to have another baby if you are."

"I want you to take your time deciding, babe. I don't want you to just make the decision because you're having a really good day."

"But that's just it. I want more good days. I love seeing your face light up when the girls ask for a bedtime story. I want you to have everything you want. And it would be fun to have a little boy."

"You know, we still have a fifty-fifty chance."

"I know, and I'll be happy with another girl, but I want my own basketball team."

Elizabeth smiled. "You never cared about sports."

"No, but I care about you. And I love our family. I think it would be good for us. Allison and Stevie would be thrilled, too."

"Okay. We'll try. But if you change your mind, that's okay."

"At least we won't have to worry about the apocalypse with this baby."

Elizabeth groaned. "You know I spent two and a half years of my life preparing for a catastrophe that never came? You're going to make jokes about that now?"

"You want to make me stop joking?" He smirked at her, inclining his head toward the stairs.

"You're really amazing sometimes." Elizabeth was also smiling.

"I'd be a lot more pleased if you say that in about an hour."

"An hour? Really?"

"I've had a good day."

"Well I think I can make it better…"

"I think you probably can, too."

* * *

Two months later…

* * *

"Henry? You busy, babe?" Elizabeth walked into the kitchen, leaning against the doorframe.

Henry was at the counter chopping vegetables.

"Nope. Just making a salad for dinner. You need something?"

"Yeah. Come kiss me." Elizabeth stayed against the wall.

Henry laughed. "Is that all you keep me around for?"

"No. There are a few other perks I can think of." She laughed along with her husband, but when he kissed her, she clung to him for a moment too long.

"You okay, Lizzie?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. But I've got something to tell you, and I'm not sure how you're going to take it."

"Did Allison bite someone at daycare?"

Elizabeth laughed. "No."

"Okay. Well, let's get it out."

"I'm pregnant."

"Come here, babe." Henry smiled broadly and opened his arms. Elizabeth moved into his embrace happily. Henry continued, "You're so beautiful. I love you. God, I'm glad you're mine." He kissed her forehead.

"Thanks, Hank. You okay with it?"

"I'm not sure how it's going to work, but I am so happy with you, darling. Don't let me say anything that makes you think there is anything less than perfect with you."

Elizabeth buried her face in his neck.

Henry tried to look down at her. "You believe me, babe? I'm happy. I want another baby to love."

She looked up, smiling. "I do believe you. But are you sure you're going to be okay?"

"You think we can do it all over again? The diapers and pacifiers? Bottles and baby monitors?"

"Yep. We're still young."

"Not as young as we use to be."

"You may be getting older, but I refuse to." Elizabeth elbowed him in the ribs.

"Well, anyone can see that. You still look twenty-three."

"But I was a wise twenty-three. I had the good sense to be married to you for a year already."

They both laughed at that.

"I'd say that was a pretty good decision you made."

"We'll be fine, you know. Work is settling down. I don't go on trips much anymore. I can stay home with the kids more. You've got tenure. You're editor is finally happy with the manuscript. We can do this."

Henry was quiet for a minute. He looked his wife full in the face, holding her hand.

"You think we're any good at this parenting thing?"

"How do you mean?" Elizabeth didn't know what Henry was getting at.

"I'm just saying. With the secrets and the late nights…"

"Stevie loves the late nights."

"What kid wouldn't? But she doesn't understand it. She just thinks it's normal."

"It is normal for us. That's okay."

Henry latched onto a new idea. "But what will life be like when one of them has career day?"

"Then we send you, and you scandalize the class with the medieval papacy. They'll never think to ask where I work."

"You know, everyone talks about talks about the reformation papacy as the medieval even though it was in a much different period than the real medieval papacy… and Pelagius II should really be included in the medievals instead of just calling him an Early Pope."

"Maybe don't talk about that stuff. Just talk about the female pope, and you'll have them hanging on your every word."

"That's a legend that started in the thirteenth century because Stephen of Bourbon wanted to scandalize the papacy. _De septem donis Spiritu Sancti_ wasn't even a properly written papal history, anyway…"

"Stop. Stop. You've proven my point. If there's a career day, we're going to send you, and you can talk about Stephen of Bourbon all you want. Or until the kids fall asleep."

"Thanks for that." Henry's words were sharp, but his smile betrayed his teasing.

"But really. You gonna be okay?"

"To quote the great philosopher Bono, as long as I've got you, babe."

"Maybe we should just apologize to the kids now."

"For what? They'll love the new baby."

"For all their career days. The teasing will never stop after you get done."

"For all your jokes, you like listening to me solve all your moral conflicts."

"I do."

"I love hearing you say those words."

"You do?"

"I do."


End file.
